Traineeship Tunes I: Pop songs to not freak out about the future

This three-part series tells you what pop songs have to say about traineeships - one part for each working language of the European Commission. Today, we start with part one: German Gems.

Swirl, sniff, swirl – wine tasting for dummies

Ever been to a wine tasting? If not, you should definitely give it a try! If you have been to one before though, you will understand the need for a wine tasting survival guide!

 

It takes two to tandem

There are few things in life I dislike more than riding a bike: the wind in my superbly-coiffed hair, flies in my face, and the fact it undeniably gives the impression I want to help combat climate change (which I, of course, would, were it actually happening*).

Poo-like dessert and other Easter traditions

From egg-hiding, -breaking and -eating to something that looks like it already went through your digestive system – Easter traditions from around Europe come in a delightfully broad variety.

A whistlestop tour of medieval Brussels

Mention Brussels and you'll often be met with groans or remarks about what a boring city it is... and I have to say, as excited as I was at the prospect of doing a traineeship at the European Commission, the thought of moving to Brussels didn’t exactly fill me with enthusiasm. But over the last few weeks I’ve grown quite fond of the Belgian capital, and a tour of its most important medieval landmarks convinced me that it is anything but boring.

DG Enlargement strikes back!

It’s now becoming a real tradition for DG Enlargement's stagiaires: every semester they organise a trip to candidate (or potential candidate) countries. This year the destination is Skopje and Enlargement’s stagiaires have promised to organise different activities for you, to introduce you to the region.

On keeping a low profile in Brussels

Working for 18 months in international organisations taught me one lesson: to survive in a huge politically driven machine it's advisable to wear the most boring, identity-masking suit possible, switch off your common sense and freeze your facial expression in a diplomatic smile. I hadn't been very good at sticking to these lessons so far but when I changed organisation, I vowed to suppress my remaining personality and happily become completely nondescript.

What better place to do this, I thought to myself, than the European Commission; an organisation that evokes images of grey-haired bureaucrats in grey suits doing grey things (despite churning out green and white papers).

European Institutions to tackle issue of ageing population

BRUSSELS – In order to urgently address the pressing problem of an ageing and declining European population which places an undue strain on European productivity and the pension system, the Commission, after consulting with the European Parliament and the Council, has come up with a revolutionary proposal to tackle this problem at once.

Population growth and decline in Europe

 According to reliable sources within the Commission, the three major European Institutions (Commission, Parliament and Council) are to make it a condition of their stage offer for all new stagiaires to conceive at least one healthy offspring per heterosexual couple during the period of their stage.

Gypsy mobsters, dirty deals and shotgun weddings - this could be the start of a beautiful friendship… miaow!

What is the connection between the most famous line in Casablanca (and probably all movie history) and the mysterious world of Balkan gangsters? This week's CineClub screening on April 12th gave us the answer:

Big Bang in a Brussels landmark

Sunny days are meant for things like these: exploring a new city, relaxing in the park… and discussing the nature of the universe. On Saturday April 2nd nearly 40 stagiaires met beneath a cloudless sky for a double whammy event: a tour of the Atomium and a Science Café discussion on the origins of the universe.

The Atomium is a massive replica of an iron crystal’s structure that was built for the World’s Fair 1958 Expo. It is over 100 metres tall and has become a Brussels landmark. As the stagiaires waited beneath its giant glistening spheres it was clear different people wanted different things from the day; some were there just for the view from the Atomium rather than views on the universe.

Born in the 80s: party people!!

Bright neon colours - Madonna's 'Like a prayer' - shoulder pads - vibrant disco -light sparkles - 'Grease lightning' - wild hair - King of Pop's 'Thriller' - GLITTER - leopard look - Prince's 'Kiss' - Claridge - Brussels - 26th of March 2011! What?! This is not the first thing that comes to mind? In that case you definitely missed the marvellous, not to say groovy, 80s party that the outgoing liaison/stage committee organised.

Amorous singles and a future Barroso - meet your new Stage Committee!

From stealing the spotlight to detecting fraud to maybe even meeting that special someone – a wide range of incentives for getting involved emerged when we met with our new Stage Committee and Court of Auditors.

But all nine of this cosmopolitan and multilingual bunch are keen to get as many of you as possible involved in stagiaire life. They're full of enthusiasm and new ideas and are itching to take over from the Liaison Committee and get started. We found out about their plans and priorities for the coming four months and what makes them tick…

How to spend your first pay cheque...

Bulgaria: Got your first pay cheque? Great! But remember: in order to have a prosperous career you need to do something really simple. Tradition says that after receiving your first pay cheque from your new job, you have to go out and buy some nougat or Turkish delight and give it to your friends and colleagues. The sticky sweets will ensure that your salary will stretch indefinitely and that your work is sweet.

Martina Marinova,
DG COMM

Going crazy in Antwerp

While we had all expected to just have a quick scenic tour of Antwerp, within minutes of our arrival we found ourselves racking our brains, trying to figure out what the hell "Zot van A" was supposed to mean. What made things even more confusing was that all the locals we asked seemed to be giving different answers.

The day had started at Brussels Central Station at 10.20 with a 45-minute train ride to Antwerp. Upon arrival at Antwerp-Berchem, the outgoing Stage Committee, consisting of Anna, Milos and Christos, handed us quizzes with architectural and cultural questions on the Cogels-Osylei district. So our group of about 40 people split up into teams and the competition began.